It's my life
by vanellope99
Summary: Miguel is murdered and has to deal with the trauma while adjusting to his new life in the Land of the Dead. However, there is be a way in which he might be able to go back home. Rated T for safety.
1. Chapter 1

Miguel felt his fingertips grow cold as the blood left his stomach.

In a way he was grateful that the man had only stabbed him once, and it was indeed an accident. The man just wanted Miguel's wallet, it could have been anyone else, and he turned out to be the unlucky winner.

Miguel opened his mouth, to find that his voice was gone. He had miscalculated how much blood he had lost, and now he wouldn't be able to scream.

He still used all of his strength and screamed as loud as he could.

He relaxed when he heard voices that grew closer to him. He couldn't recognize any of them, which meant that his family wasn't in there.

That gave him a sense of relief; at least his family wouldn't see him like this.

He closed his eyes and decided to save his strength, he only had to hold on a little longer, and then he will be in the hospital _sano y salvo_.

His thoughts focused on his little sister, Socorro, and he can only wonder what might have been.

He would have watched her grow up, through all of the good and bad that the world had to offer. He can only sigh and keep his hand on the wound to try to stop the bleeding.

Soon enough he feels himself drifting, and the voices sound further away. Now he's too weak to fight it and just lets himself go.

—

By the time he wakes up, he can already tell that he's dead.

However, he is not in a room, instead he is in a line. He looks around to find that he's near the bridge of petals that he crossed once before.

"Next" a male voice calls impatiently from the window.

Miguel's body reacts automatically and he steps forward.

The man seems tired and takes off his glasses to rub his eyes. "Name?"

"Miguel Rivera"

"The living boy?!" the man is suddenly awake and looking at Miguel from head to toes. "Ah. _Lo siento_ " he manages to say and avoids eye contact with Miguel while reaching for a new form.

"Can you explain to me how does this work?" Miguel asks ignoring the man's comment.

"Just some paper work and then we'll assign you to your death counselor" the man answers, "cause of death?"

"Murder, I think" Miguel hesitates

"Why do you 'think'?" the man asks adjusting his glasses and finally looking at Miguel.

"I don't think he meant to kill me" Miguel answered, "He just wanted my wallet"

"Ah" the man responds and continues to ask him questions. Miguel can't help but feel confused, how did he die? He held on. Why didn't he survive?

" _Niño_?" the man asks, making Miguel snap out of his thoughts.

" _Si? Perdón_ " Miguel responds automatically.

"Your counselor" the man hands Miguel a piece of paper, "follow the instructions and you'll get to her office", the man waves Miguel goodbye before calling to the next person in line.

—

Miguel can't recall how it is that he ended in the counselor's office. He was far too lost in his own thoughts to even comprehend what his counselor said to him.

"Miguel?" the counselor repeated his name calmly.

" _Si?_ " Miguel responded

"Do you know where you are?"

"Your office"

"And what is my name?"

"You never told me"

"Maria Sanchez" Maria sighed and looked at Miguel's paperwork. This was going to be a tough case.

"Can I go now?" Miguel asked as he began to grow more aware of his surroundings and they slowly overwhelmed him.

"I just need to call your family" the counselor said and picked up the phone.

Miguel's body reacted automatically. He was not ready to see them.

"Can you please give me their address?" he asked, "I've been here before and I think I can find my way"

Maria sighed. Worst-case scenario he would run away. She probably had to give him some sort of power.

" _Esta bien_ " she responded and handed him a piece of paper with the address.

She analyzed his body movements as he walked out, but she could only conclude that it was going to be tough.

Miguel hummed the only song he could think of: "Remember Me", as he walked on the streets he once knew. The humming settled the shaking, and he thinks of what he is going to say to his family.

His clothes are bloody, but he can't do much about that. The only thing he is certain about is that he needs to find Hector.

After walking around for what seemed hours Miguel spotted him.

Hector was on the plaza where they had once performed. He was sitting on the edge of the fountain with his eyes closed and his hands on the famous guitar. He wasn't performing, and showed no signs of going home anytime soon.

Miguel felt his body grow tense and he suddenly felt uneasy. Maybe he could find him another day?

Without thinking, he turned around and began walking the other direction, but he felt a strong hand stopping him suddenly.

"Hey _niño_ " a police officer asked "why are you here all by yourself?"

"I'm not," Miguel, answered lowering his gaze to the floor.

Miguel could only assume that the police officer was concerned with his appearance. He was wearing the red hoodie he had worn before, along with his gray shirt, which was covered in dry blood with the hole the knife made.

"Who are you here with?" the officer asked without removing his hand from his shoulder.

"That man over there" Miguel pointed to Hector.

" _Por supuesto_ " the police officer responded sarcastically "Did you just arrive to the land of the dead? Do you even know who that is?"

"Yes, he is my great-great grandfather" Miguel answered quietly.

"So you are the living boy?" the officer asked without removing the sarcasm in his voice.

Miguel forced himself to look at the officer in the eye to show him his face.

"Ay Dios" the officer responded " _Niño_ you have to clean up" he said automatically and avoided Miguel's gaze.

"I just got here," Miguel, answered coldly.

" _Lamento escuchar eso_ " The officer said and took his hand off of Miguel's shoulder, "go with your grandfather and clean-up" he ordered and began to walk away.

"Miguel?"

Miguel turned around to find that Hector was standing near him.

" _H-h-h-hola Papá Héctor_ " Miguel stuttered.

Translation:

 _sano y salvo:_ safe and sound

 _Lo siento:_ I'm sorry

 _Niño_ (used many times) = male version of kid. (the female one is ´Niña´)

 _Esta bien:_ Alright

 _Por supuesto:_ Of course

 _Lamento escuchar eso:_ I'm sorry to hear that


	2. Chapter 2

_You guys are amazing! This is my first fanfiction and I was afraid that it might take a long time before anyone ran across it. I will do my best to update every week, or at least once a month._

 _I did find it difficult to get settled in so please excuse any mistakes ;-;_

 _I personally like it when the stories are long so I will try to make them long, unless you guys would like otherwise_

 _Anyways, let's continue with the story…_

 _..._

Miguel's body reacts quickly and he runs to hug Héctor. Héctor hugs him back and swallows the questions that he desperately wanted to ask. He feels Miguel's bones and he knows that this time, he can't go home. He recognizes the wave of anger that takes over him, which makes him hold Miguel tighter.

Miguel doesn't seem to mind and he holds on to his great-great grandfather.

After a while they both let go and Héctor looks at Miguel cautiously, he knows he needs to approach this slowly. Miguel avoids looking at him and he clears his throat to start up the conversation.

"¿ _Cómo_ …?" Héctor can finally find it in himself to speak.

"It wasn't my fault" Miguel begins "I swear, I was just walking and he wanted my wallet but for some dumb reason I froze and the next thing I knew he pushed me against the wall and..."

"Miguel, _cálmate_ " Héctor responds quietly and shuts Miguel up by pulling him for another hug.

"I missed you so much Papá Héctor" Miguel's voice cracks and he feels the shock drifting and the reality finally setting in. He hangs on to Héctor's spine and begins to cry, feeling the whole world crashing into him.

"I missed you too _mijo_ " Héctor responds and bites his tongue as he feels the tears in his eyes. He needed to be strong for Miguel, at least for now. The wave of emotions is almost unbearable; some are unrecognizable, but some of them stand out: Anger, relief nostalgia, shock and guilt. Deep down he had wanted to see the boy again, it had only been a year since he had last seen him. He is surprised when he recognizes how much he has grown, but the feeling turns sickening when he realizes that Miguel will not grow any more.

He had last seen him in the Day of the death of the past year, this had been the first time Héctor has been able to cross. He remembered the feeling of relief when he saw that Miguel had made it home safely. The feeling of love and pride had filled his chest when he realized how big his family was now, and how big of a life and future Miguel would have. The feeling contained a little of sadness as he realized that he would not be around to see the boy grow up. But he would get glimpses of Miguel's life every Day of the Dead, and that was more than he would have asked for.

Héctor remembered slapping himself when the thought of Miguel passing early had crossed his mind, after all, that way they could be reunited sooner. But now he could only think of how to treat the poor boy. He had his own experience with dying earlier, but back then it seemed like an accident, and he had kept himself going with the thought that one day he would see his family again. He recognized the blood in Miguel's shirt, it was still fresh and concentrating on one hole in his stomach. This led him to the conclusion that it was either a stab or gun shot. This meant that it was different, and he feels the wave of anger hitting his body strongly, he used to hate that emotion and would avoid it at all costs, but now he welcomes it, knowing that it is justified.

"Papá Héctor?" Miguel asks softly. It is then that Héctor realizes that he hugging Miguel too tight.

" _Perdón mijo"_ Héctor apologizes and releases him immediately.

Miguel looks to the floor and mumbles something quietly.

"What's that?" Héctor asks and reaches to pull Miguel's face so he can look at him closely.

"Nobody will look at me in the eye" Miguel avoids Héctor's gaze.

"Hey, _mírame"_ Héctor meets Miguel's gaze and attempts to lock it, "I get it, when I died, people would avoid looking at me, since I was so young".

Miguel can't help but snort at the comment, he had never really seen Héctor as a young man, but more as an individual on his early or mid-30's.

"What?" Héctor blinks wondering what he could have said to make Miguel laugh.

"Sorry Papá Héctor, but you are not as young as you think" Miguel blurts out between giggles.

"For your information, I AM very young" Héctor replies pretending to feel offended. At least Miguel was smiling.

"Yeah, in your imagination"

"How old do you think I am?"

"Late or mid 30's?" Miguel asks confidently.

"HA! In your dreams, _mijo_ " Héctor sighed, how old had he been? Probably around 21? His memory failed him since he had stopped counting and caring as the years went by. "Back in my day we got married in our teens, so I was 17 when I married Imelda, and we had Coco shortly after I turned 18"

"Are you going to be one of those 'back in my day' grandparents?" Miguel asked and stuck his tongue out in disgust.

"I might" Héctor smiled mischievously, "Either way, my time was THE time, not like nowadays when all you kids do is listen to weird music and play in that weird metal cube thing"

"Weird metal cube thing?" Miguel asked confusedly, "you mean a phone?"  
"Back in my day…" Héctor began.

" _Ay por Dios,_ please don't" Miguel interrupted him with a smile in his face.

Héctor smiled and pulled Miguel in for another hug, but this time he makes sure to do it softly. At least Miguel has kept his sense of humor, he would have expected to have seen a very cold and angry boy.

"Do you want to go for a walk?" Héctor asks with a warm smile.

...

Héctor and Miguel had walked around for a few hours, avoiding the elephant in the room. Miguel asked all kinds of questions about the Land of the Dead, so many that it made Héctor dizzy.

"Okay, here's another one" Miguel looked around trying to come up with another question, "Is this city where all of the dead come to?"

"No, this is only Santa Cecilia" Héctor answered sounding non-characteristically tired.

Miguel sighed deeply, "I'm sorry Papá Héctor" he whispered loudly looking at the floor.

Héctor stopped walking and reached out to Miguel, but quickly changed his mind and turned his hand into a fist. "What for _mijo_?" he asks attempting to keep his voice soft.

"We should probably meet up with the rest of the family" Miguel states firmly, "I just don't know what to say to them"

"Let me do the talking, kid" Héctor places a hand on the boy's shoulder and sighs, "I know it will be hard, but if you don't want to talk to me or the family, there is always your death counselor"

"You had one too?" Miguel looks up at Héctor curiously.

"I think we all do" Héctor looks up looking in serious thought, "I got a guy, I think it was Marco? Or maybe José?" Hector smiles and brushes it off, "I didn't use him until after I found out that Imelda was here"

"Ah"

The silence turns awkward. None of them make an try to break it, attempting to make the time away from home longer, as none of them knew how the encounter with the family would turn out.

...

 _Cómo_ \- How

 _Cálmate_ \- Calm down

 _Perdón_ \- Sorry

 _Mírame_ \- Look at me

 _Ay por Dios_ \- Oh my God


	3. Chapter 3

_Hello again! This chapter took a little bit longer to upload since I finally had a chance to get my computer fixed, and it took a while. It is also a little longer because I didn't really want to end in too big of a cliffhanger so I tried to wrap it up as much as possible._

 _I hope you are all enjoying it! I sort of know where I am going with it, but make up most of the stuff as I go with it. The writing feels a little sloppy so if that's a problem let me know. I will do my best to make sure that the characters feel realistic._

 _Also, would you guys like a side in the Land of the Living? I was planning on keeping it mostly in the Land of the Dead, but if you feel otherwise, let me know!_

 _On to the story…_

 _..._

Miguel caught himself holding Héctor's hand, and he felt his nonexistent stomach cramp up as they strolled to the Rivera household.

They were both silent, walking side to side, Miguel looked down, attempting to drag his feet along. The streets looked different than he remembered, and the city had a different vibe during the day. He looked at the pattern of the floor and counted the bricks, amazed that he could make it all the way to 500.

Héctor, on the other hand, looked straight ahead, not thinking of anything. He snapped out of it when Miguel suddenly grabbed his hand; the thought of stopping and pulling the boy for another hug crossed his mind. But he quickly brushed it off realizing that Miguel had not reacted at all.

They had taken the long way home, trying to kill some time to work up the courage to let the family now that Miguel had passed early. Héctor knew that the worst reaction would come from Imelda. The reaction that scared him the most, was Coco's; she wasn't a little girl anymore. He had spent the last year getting to know who her, and had found that she had Imelda's strength, but saw a lot of himself in her. He knew that when Imelda would hurt, she'd get angry, but she hadn't seen Coco hurt yet.

He felt his hands shake as he recognized the Rivera household, and he automatically turned to Miguel. The boy was still looking down with and expression that Héctor recognized right away. It was the expression that Héctor once wore when he was rejected by Imelda after she had passed. It was an expression of hopelessness, of a man without a home whose world was falling apart; an expression of powerlessness.

" _Mijo?_ " He asked softly.

"Mmm?" Miguel responded suddenly snapping out of his thoughts and looking up at him.

Héctor signaled to the house in front of them, "We're here".

Miguel looked up and was surprised to find that the house looked the same in the world of the living, "It's the same?"

"Oh yeah", Héctor smiled, "Imelda's parents built it and she refuses to move"

"Are her parents still here?" Miguel asked curiously.

"No, they passed after we got married, so Coco didn't get to meet them" Héctor couldn't help but chuckle. Imelda's father wasn't happy when he asked for his blessing to marry her. He did not like the orphan that played at a local bar for money, and would come to his house to serenade his daughter at very late hours. In the end he accepted it, and was even kind enough to leave the house to the couple in his will.

Miguel began mumbling quietly, but quickly stopped himself.

"What _mijo?_ "

"I'm just not ready" Miguel looked down feeling the need of crying building up in his throat; only to find that there weren't any tears left to cry, he was completely dry.

"I know" Héctor answered and they both grew silent.

They were both thinking the same thing; as soon as they delivered the news to rest of the family, it would become real. Even though both were aware that Miguel's passing was permanent, it still felt surreal. Death was funny, quick and confusing. It left them both hanging without any room to breathe. And now they had to face it head on. Face the consequences of a decision that they didn't make. This wasn't just Miguel's pain and sorrow, it was everybody's.

"Let's go" Héctor took a deep breath and squeezed Miguel's hand. He felt a light squeeze from Miguel's end as they prepared.

Héctor moved quickly to give a soft knock on the door.

"You don't have your own key?" Miguel aksed

"Imelda stopped giving them to me more after I lost the first 3"

"Ah"

The door opened quickly and to Héctor's relief it was Julio.

"Ah, Papá Hector" Julio smiled, "It's dawn, and Mamá Imelda is not happy with you" Julio cringed, "You might have to sleep on the couch again".

Miguel gave a quiet chuckle, making Julio notice his presence.

"Miguel?" Julio looked at the boy from head to toes, trying to comprehend the situation. It quickly hit him. "Oh", he could barely articulate as he felt his legs turn to jelly.

Héctor stepped forward and grabbed Julio's shoulder softly, they were both silent. Julio had expected to see the boy again, and looked forward to bonding with him. He had a feeling that the boy wouldn't grow up, but knocked on wood every time the feeling returned

"I'm sorry Miguel" Julio could barely articulate and stepped forward to pat the boy in the shoulder.

Miguel nodded, avoiding his gaze.

"Are you ready?" Héctor asked.

"If not" Julio quickly stepped in, "We can sneak you in so you can get some sleep while we tell everyone else"

"I…" Miguel stuttered, "I'd like to get some sleep". The boy felt ashamed at his weakness of facing his family like a man. He knew they'd want to know how he passed, but the reality of being murdered had not settled yet; he had barely wrapped his head around the idea of his own dead. And he wasn't ready to remember.

"Okay, Miguel" Julio smiled, "I'll set you up in the guest room"

...

Héctor and Julio sighed triumphally as the gave one last gaze at Miguel. As soon as Miguel's head hit the pillow, he was sound asleep. But just as Héctor and Julio were about to exit the door, the boy began weeping uncontrollably; they quickly checked and found that he was still asleep. Julio sat next to him and began stroking his hair while Héctor looked for his guitar. They looked at each other puzzled, since both only had daughters, they didn't have experience taking care of boys. The boy finally calmed after Héctor played Remember Me, just as he played for Coco when she was a baby.

The last challenge was to face the family, and both were worried about Coco. Julio knew that she didn't believe in evil, and always tried to look at the positive side of the situation. She had always been the strong one, the one to pat everyone in the back and trust that the situation would get better. But now, Julio wasn't sure of what was coming.

"Did he tell you what happened?", Julio asked quietly as they left the room.

"He said a man tried to take his wallet" Héctor felt the anger returning and filling his chest, "He had a hole in his shirt covered in blood, it could have been a stab or gunshot"

"A murder?" Julio felt his bones tense up as the thought filled him with anger.

Héctor nodded, "how are we going to break it to them?".

"Knowing Mamá Imelda, you might want to stay by his side" Julio suggested, "I'll stay with Coco and tell them".

Héctor smiled and grabbed his son-in-law's shoulder. After the past year of getting to know his family, he was especially fond of Julio, (fond of all his family, really). He found that each member of his family was special with different qualities, and Julio's was his strength. The man had a sweet and kind side, always speaking softly to Coco, and being cooperative in the shoe business. It had always been hard to imagine his little girl married, but he was glad that Julio and Rosita had joined the family.

...

The living room had a strange aura, Héctor and Julio had called all the family to the living room, and it was obvious they had some news.

"Why were you late?" Imelda asked Héctor raising an eyebrow.

"That is actually the reason we gathered all of you here" Héctor answered and grabbed his wife's hand.

Julio stood next to Coco's chair softly grabbed her shoulder, "This is about Miguel"

"What did he do NOW!" Imelda was the first one to speak.

" _Mi vida…_ " Héctor looked at her attentively, "Miguel didn't do anything this time".

"I'm afraid Miguel has been m…" Julio stopped himself when he realized what he about to say, "Miguel has passed"

"I found him today, and that is why I was late" Héctor quickly stepped in, "He's resting in the guest room"

Victoria's hard expression turned into shock, Rosita collapsed onto the couch, Oscar and Felipe turned to look at each other in shock. Imelda collapsed into Héctor, and he held onto her.

Julio looked over at Coco, and noticed that her expression was blank, "Coco?" He asked softly; in response she pulled her hand to her shoulder to grab his.

"I have to see him" Imelda regained her balance and began walking out of the living room, but Héctor placed a hand on her shoulder, stopping her.

" _Amor,_ it might not be the best idea"

"How?" Coco finally snapped out of her trance and looked at both Héctor and Julio.

Julio looked at Héctor. Héctor nodded and looked at Imelda, she pulled her lips together and turned back to her family.

"He was in shock", he explained, "but I understood that it was a robbery gone wrong", he tried to sugarcoat the situation as much as possible.

"Robbery gone wrong?" Victoria asked, "you wouldn't mean…"

The whole room fell silent.

"#$ &%*!"

The family turned to look at Imelda in shock, she was usually tough and got angry easily, but always avoiding swear words.

"Imelda…" Héctor reached out to her, expecting for her to push him away, but she instead pulled him in for a hug. She buried her face in his chest and he felt her warm tears. Héctor felt proud as he wrapped his arms around her, she barely showed her weak side to anyone, and he was grateful that she finally relied on him. For the past year it had been long and awkward since she was used to running the family on her own, but her brothers took advantage of the seniority that Héctor held to get away with many things. Little by little she began to let him in, and it had seemed like such a big victory when she finally agreed to share her room with him.

"Mamá Imelda…" Victoria whispered. Imelda softly pulled Héctor away and composed herself before turning to Victoria. "What do we do now?".

Imelda turned to look at Héctor, letting him take control of this situation.

"For now, it's best to let Miguel rest", Héctor spoke firmly, "I'll see if he might want to go to the police station to see if the man has passed" he could not hold back a sigh, "If not, then he might want to see his death counselor"

The silence filled the room once again, the environment feeling odd since it was the first time Héctor acted as the alpha of the family.

"At least tomorrow it's Sunday, so we can all spend some time with him"


	4. Chapter 4

_Hello! I apologize in advance for all the times that I might update a little later than expected, but I am moving. And I love books so I got to pack around 500 ;-; plus probably another 2,000 that my mom owns (you love books until you move and have to pack them up)._

 _I decided I'm going to do a side on the living side, but focus more on the Land of the Dead since I want to keep it more on Miguel's point of view and adapting to being dead. Also, the dead can't see their relatives until the Day of the Dead so they can only guess what they are up to before that, so I'll try to keep that mystery._

 _I might also update a little late since I'm starting to realize that the past chapters have A LOT of typos, so I want to make sure the writing is as good as possible._

 _Anyways, on to the story…_

…

" _Shut up!" the strange man with the breath that smelled like liquor and cigarettes demanded as he stabbed the knife deeper into Miguel's stomach. The screams came out almost automatically, making the man angrier._

 _Miguel paralyzed with horror as the man's mouth turned into a wicked smile. He covers the boy's mouth and twists the knife without flinching. There wasn't any more pain, but the panic filled his lungs, blocking his airway._

' _No, no, NO!' Miguel tried to move his legs to get away, but the man grabbed him by the throat and lifted him up. 'POR FAVOR STOP!' His legs were kicking thin air._

 _The man opened Miguel's wallet and smiled when noticing that the boy had over 1,000 pesos. "This should cover my debt at the bar"._

' _My savings… Just take them… Just let me go… I have to… Mamá… Help… I can't breathe…'_

 _The darkness was overwhelming, and he felt himself drowning in it. He could recognize a mix of emotions, but some were new._

' _You left me there to die… Like a stray dog…'._

 _Now there was only Anger. He knew the voice that was building up from his stomach, it demanded revenge._

' _I will end you, just like you ended me'_

 _Now there were multiple voices._

' _It's your fault, you took that shortcut home'_

' _End him'_

' _He's still here, he knows where you are… You have to run'_

' _You are not a man, you couldn't even fight a drunk'_

 _Miguel felt the tears build up in his eyes, 'SHUT UP! Leave me alone! Please!'_

' _Without us, you are alone_ _!'_

' _I can't leave…'_

' _End him and I'll leave…'_

' _You are nothing Miguel Rivera… Nothing"_

"WAKE UP!"

Miguel's eyes shut open, and he finds himself covered in sweat. "It was just a dream… Just a dream". He whispers between wheezes as he's looking around trying to find the voice that had woken him up. All he knew was that it was a female, it didn't sound like the voice of a small child, an old or a young woman. It was simply a woman's voice.

"This isn't my room…?" What had happened the previous day? He could remember waking up and eating the special breakfast that his grandmother had made for him. The day wasn't out of the ordinary, he had gone to school… Oh right, a classmate had volunteered to tutor him in math since he was close to failing. When finished, Miguel got offered a ride home, but refused since he wanted to walk home and listen to music on his new smart phone. He had taken a shortcut home, and the drunk man… The drunk man!

He pulled up his hands automatically to confirm his worst fear. He's dead.

A soft knock interrupted his thoughts. Héctor's head pooped into the room with a nervous grin.

"Good morning, kiddo"

"Good morning, Papá Héctor" Miguel returned the smile.

"Can I come in?"

"Sure" Miguel stretched his neck and prepared his best smile.

Héctor walked in slowly, and sat on the bed, "Julio and I told the family", _and their reaction was upsetting, just as expected;_ they spent all night comforting each other and preparing for the morning. Rosita and Imelda spent their time in the kitchen, baking sweets, making tamales and planning the meals for the next day. Victoria joined them, but was busy reading a book on child psychology, analyzing the situation and preparing for what was coming. Meanwhile the men took turns spotting Miguel and preparing his room; the family had recently been making arrangements and building a second story, and thus the boy's room was brand new. They even decided to make a quick trip to the furniture store and buy him a desk and wardrobe. Everyone was except for Coco, Héctor and Julio knew that her reaction would be unexpected, but the fact that she wanted to be left alone was a new one. She had spent the night outside, humming lullabies with only her alebrije for company.

"Sorry I couldn't do it myself" Miguel looked down to his hands, playing with them nervously. His sense of touch had not changed, and to his surprise his bones to be soft and fresh, like a baby's skin.

"Don't worry about it" Héctor responds with a big smile, "Are you hungry?"

"Hungry?" up until then, Miguel hadn't felt it, but it suddenly took over his body, that being the only thing he could think about, "yikes"

"Yeah, it's simply because your body is adapting to being dead, after a few days it'll go away" Héctor got up and offers his hand to the boy.

…

The house was calm, which was expected since the whole family was waiting in the dining room with the feast that Imelda and Rosita had prepared.

The whole family held their breath when Miguel walked in, some looked at him in shock while others looked away. The silence was tense, and no one dared to break it, leaving Miguel with the urge to run out of the room, only being held back by Héctor's hand on his shoulder.

"Mijo" Coco was the first one to speak, "you might want to change"

Miguel looked down at his clothing, and to his horror he realized that he was still wearing the gray shirt covered in blood. His reaction was to turn around while attempting to cover it. "Sorry" He mumbled.

"I'll lend you some of my clothes" Julio immediately steps up, grabbing Miguel's shoulder and nodding at Héctor, who nodded back.

Julio lead Miguel to his and Coco's room. The boy wasn't surprised to find it covered in pictures, and he felt nostalgic when he recognized one of himself with his sister Socorro. He was kneeling while playing Héctor guitar and she sat on the ground clapping with a big smile on her face. It looked like it had been taken in the last Day of the Dead, after all, Miguel was wearing his charro suit.

"Miguel?"

It is then that he realizes that he is crying, "sorry Papá Julio" he responds and wipes the tears off. Julio smiles and stands next to him.

"Coco couldn't resist and had to take a picture" he explains, "it was a beautiful _Día de Muertos_ "

"Yeah" Miguel whispers and feels how dry his throat is, "where can I change?"

"The bathroom is right over there" Julio nods to a door on the left.

"I thought there weren't any restrooms on the land of the dead" Miguel comments with a hint of sarcasm in his voice.

"We have them, but without the toilets" Julio answered, "I mean, we all like to take a shower and Coco fixes her wig and makeup in the sink"

"Can I shower here?" Miguel asks while walking opening the door and smelling the vanilla candles.

"Sure!" Julio answers sounding a little too excited, "I'll wait out here" _Easy Julio._ He hands his clothes to the boy and sits down on the queen size bed, "let me know if you need anything"

"Will do" Miguel responds with a nod and enters the bathroom, carefully placing the clothes Julio handed him on the sink. He takes off his clothes slowly, exploring his new body. He hadn't paid attention in class when they were giving the lecture on the human body, and is surprised to find how complicated his bones were. He avoids the mirror and steps into the shower.

The water is warm and it washes down the blood down the drain. He is amazed at the amount, he knew that he bleed to death, but never really calculated the actual amount he lost. He reaches for the shampoo but remembers that the dead wear wigs, and pulls on his hair to confirm it. He washes the rest of his body, allowing himself to relax under the warm water. When finished, he remains under the shower until the hot water runs out. He then washes his new wig thoroughly, making sure that there isn't any dust or blood on it.

He steps out of the shower and allows himself to have one look in the mirror. The markings on his cheeks were like Héctor's, being of the same shape but with different colors. He recognizes that his face is rounder and smaller, mostly resembling Julio's. The towel is soft, but wet from all the steam that the warm water produced, Miguel brushes it off and dries himself as best as he can; he also dries his wig and puts it on as symmetrically as possible. Surprisingly the Julio's clothing fits him perfectly, but it made him look like a man-child, hopefully they'll take him shopping for new clothes soon.

He picks up his dirty clothes and steps out of the bathroom.

"They fit!" Julio comments surprisingly.

Miguel responds him with a smile, "where do I put these?" he asks while showing them his dirty clothes.

"We can always throw them away" Julio answers cautiously.

"I like my jacket and I think the pants are still good" Miguel explains as he looks at them carefully, "I don't mind tossing the shirt though"

"Alright, follow me to the laundry room" Miguel hands him his clothes but holds on the shirt.

…

The laundry room isn't any different from the one in the land of the living, he explores it while Julio puts the clothing in different piles.

"Are you ready to toss it?" Julio asks referring to the bloody shirt.

Miguel gives it one last look and then hands it to Julio. He finds the nearest trash can and throws it in there. The boy makes a mental note of the can and follows his great-grandfather out of the room and into the dining room where the family is waiting anxiously.

He sits down and avoids their stares by admiring the food; the table was filled with so many dishes it felt like it was the Day of the Dead. He spots conchas, chilaquiles, potato and egg, potato and ham, huevos rancheros, toast, quesadillas, beans, sausage and 3 different kinds of salsa.

"It looks amazing" He comments as he feels his nonexistent stomach grumble and his mouth water.

"We're glad you like it" Rosita answered while getting up to grab a plate and begins to fill it with food for Miguel.

The tension faded as soon as everyone began eating, and the family felt comfortable asking questions about members in the land of the living.

"How is Socorro?" Imelda asked with her eyes sparkling.

"She's great, finally learning to speak, and calls abuelita 'bita'" Miguel responds while reaching for more food to fill his plate, "Did you make such a big breakfast because you knew I'd be hungry?"

"That's part of it" Rosita answers and serves him 2 conchas, "but mostly because we wanted to welcome our newest member"

Miguel smiles and takes a big bite out of one of the conchas, not noticing the stares that the family is giving each other.

"Miguel" Coco begins, earning the boy's attention, "would you be willing to go down to the police station today to report what happened yesterday?" she asks as softly as possible.

Miguel automatically stops chewing and puts down the concha in the plate. The flavor is now bitter and he wants to spit it out, but instead takes a deep breath and swallows it. He opens his mouth but finds that he has nothing to say. Was he even ready to admit what happened? Or talk about it with his family? Definitely not. How would he be able to share it with the police? What if that drunk was dead? What if he wasn't?

"Mijo?" Coco asks

Miguel looks up, having already decided, "I guess I'd rather get it over with" he mumbles.


	5. Chapter 5

_Hello!_

 _An update on my messy life: we are moving this Friday and have been packing like crazy lately, also, I've been helping my dad with his business on a project, which finally ended. But the last couple of days were intense; making it difficult to find time to write another chapter. On top of that I am taking summer classes and the work finally caught up with me, so I had to take care of that as well._

 _The next chapter might take a while because of the moving. That is why I'm making this chapter longer, but I won't give up on the story :)._

 _Also, quick question, I feel like the chapters could use more description, involving the character's feelings, surrounding and actions. What do you guys think?_

…

The trip to the police station wasn't awkward since the family found all kinds of topics to talk about. Although it was mostly Oscar, Felipe and Miguel exchanging stories, the environment felt relaxed.

The women had stayed home after deciding that, at the moment, Miguel needed male figures. The decision wasn't easy for Imelda, who wanted to go and get a look at the man who was causing her great-great grandson so much pain. But she eventually caved when Victoria convinced her to get started on new boots since Miguel's were covered in blood and dust.

"Ohhhh, I remember the prank we played on Héctor soon after he moved in with us" Felipe commented with a mischievous look in his eye.

"WE DON´T TALK ABOUT THAT!" Héctor responded waving his arms.

"I still can´t believe you fell for it" Oscar responded giving his brother-in-law a pat in the shoulder.

"What was the prank?" Miguel looked at the twins for an answer.

"So, Miguel" Héctor scrambled looking for a way to change the topic, "do you like… um… books?"

Miguel eyes squinted at his great-great-grandfather, "Nice try Papá Héctor, but I still want to know"

Héctor grunted in defeat, "fine" he whispered under his breath.

"So-"

"Imelda had gone-"

"Out to buy new sewing materials-"

"And we used the phone in the workshop to call the house"

"And Héctor was the one who answered-"

"So Felipe used his Imelda voice to talk to him"

"Oh boy" Miguel could already tell where it was going.

"And I told him to order 500 roses because we were having company later-"

"But to have them arrive before she did" The twins looked at each other suppressing the shrieks of laughter.

"AND HE ACTUALLY DID" they both said in unison and began laughing loudly.

"You can't be serious" Miguel looked at Héctor incredulously.

"Imelda was really mad" Julio added with a smile

"In my defense, when I moved back in she told me specifically to do as she said without questioning her" Héctor shrugged with a grimace.

"Right, but come on" Oscar grabbed Héctor's shoulder carelessly, "Felipe's interpretation of Imelda is awful"

"Hey, it's pretty good" Felipe shot a glance to his brother, "STOP IT _IDIOTAS!_ " he used a high pitch to imitate his sister's voice.

" _Si_ …" Miguel said pressing his lips in disappointment.

"You got what she would say right" Julio comments, "but the actual voice is pretty bad"

"Did you really fall for that Papá Héctor?"

Héctor gave the boy a shy smile. He remembered that day very clearly, although it was a memory that he desperately tried to repress. It was obvious that the voice wasn't Imelda's, but he knew that if it was her brothers they'd be amused and happy. On the other hand, he didn't use phones that often and if it was Imelda it'll make her happy. Either way someone was happy.

Of course, getting the flowers was difficult and Imelda was going to be home two hours after he received the phone call, so he had to improvise. Rosita said nothing when the delivery trucks arrived as she thought that it was a romantic gesture for Imelda. Victoria stayed out of his way but gave him disapproving looks, knowing that whatever he was doing would be a disaster.

Imelda had gotten home to over 300 flowers in the house, with a pattern of petals leading to her bedroom. Of course, she had taken that as a sign of Héctor trying to get inside her bed; and she found herself flattered. She was over her 70's and for a man in his early 20's to find her attractive, well, that was a compliment. But she kept her guard up and kicked her brothers out of the house, forcing them to sleep in the workshop. She didn't want to make Héctor more embarrassed and made his punishment less severe by allowing him to sleep in the couch.

It had been an embarrassing experience for the both, so they agreed to never speak of it again. But Héctor liked to remember her embarrassed face; at first, she was unreadable, but later he understood that she was simply ashamed. She had been the same way on their honeymoon, when they were both trying to understand how each other's bodies worked. She acted though but was simply trying to understand new territory without being vulnerable. And he loved that about her, he loved her strength, and it was a privilege knowing that he was the only one who could see her vulnerable side.

"Let's just say it was a heck of an experience" Héctor responded.

"Mijo, we're here" Julio moved his head towards the building. It was near the bad part of town, where it was easy to get stolen bones, drugs and all kinds of unspeakable items.

Miguel felt numb as he stared at the building. This was it.

…

'Damn this headache!' Héctor always got headaches when stress of any kind arrived. It was one of the horrible things that followed him to the afterlife, and even when he recognized they were phantom they could still be unbearable. He knew that this one would be the worst one yet, because it wasn't just the stress with Miguel; Imelda handed him control of the whole situation. And he wasn't ready, but now it was time to be brave and be the head of the family, something he had dreamed of for decades. He understood that his wife wouldn't trust him again if he didn't handle this right, which made the headache more overpowering.

Miguel had decided to enter the testifying room alone, accompanied by the station's counselor. Héctor knew that the boy would deal with the situation on his own way. He had seen that on the Day of the Dead when Miguel was cursed, and he set out to find his great-great grandfather alone in the strangest of the places.

The room was tense, with the receptionist's typing and the loud fan as the only noises; even Oscar and Felipe remained serious and silent, staring at the testifying room anxiously. The family could pick up some sounds, but it was mostly sobbing, making them more uneasy.

"Look _mi familia_ " Héctor said putting all emphasis on the word ' _familia_ ', reason being that it felt so good to finally being able to say it, "I know this is hard on all of us"

"It's new territory" Felipe said.

"Horrible territory" Oscar replied.

"Really shitty territory" Julio spoke with no hint of regret.

Héctor frowned but quickly brushed off the word his son-in-law had used, because he was right. The situation was not only horrible, confusing and angering; it was shitty. Now they were standing in the eye of the hurricane, the storm of knowing that Miguel was dead, had passed; but now the worst part was coming: the boy's reaction. The family knew that afterwards, they would be the ones to clean and pick up the pieces, which wasn't going to be easy. "That's true" Héctor responded, "but for now we need to be there for each other"

Julio and the twins nodded.

"And I want you guys to know that you can count on me for whatever you need" Héctor added while attempting to keep his voice firm, "I know that it might be awkward since it hasn't been long since I came back, but I still want you to know that"

"The same goes for you" Felipe said.

" _Hermanito_ " Oscar added.

"We know that this is a rough situation" Julio stated with a kind smile, "and Imelda put you in charge of it, which won't be easy"

"We know you don't handle stress well-" Felipe mentioned.

"And are probably are having the worst of your headaches" Oscar finished.

Héctor blinked, "How…?"

"Felipe and I remember that look-"

"It's the same one you had when Imelda was giving birth"

Héctor smiled, he remembered the amount of stress when Coco was born; he? A father? HA. It was so scary it was laughable, he had grown up as an orphan with only nuns and the priest for parental figures. How was he going to be a good father if he never had one? Coco turned out to be such a fine woman, but Héctor knew that this was because Imelda raised her. If he couldn't do that right, how was he going to conquer this?

"I appreciate it" Héctor replied and gave his in-laws a genuine smile. He was so lucky to have such a loving and supporting family, and now it was time to show them what they meant to him.

The testifying room's door opened suddenly, revealing a concerned police officer with a fake smile. Miguel stood behind him with his face swollen from the crying, and station's counselor laid a hand on his shoulder.

"The accused man has not passed yet" the officer announced, "so you don't have to worry about that for now"

"What happens when he does pass?" asked Héctor and stepped forward to grab Miguel, who followed without complaining.

"It depends" the officer looked down at his paperwork, "If he is caught and trialed in the Land of the Living and does whatever punishment assigned, then when passing he would be a free man"

Miguel shuddered violently, earning the attention of everyone in the room.

"But not to worry, if that were to be the scenario you can always file for a restraining order" the officer gave the boy a reassuring look, "and we take those very seriously"

"What happens if the man isn't caught" Julio challenged with anger in his voice.

"If he isn't, then he would be trialed here" The officer answered, "would you happen to have the clothes you were wearing?" he turned to Miguel with a calming smile

"I threw them away" Miguel answered shyly.

"We can always get them back _mijo_ " Julio now spoke in a calmer tone, "why do you need the clothing?"

"If the man's DNA is on them, then there is no need for a trial" the officer pressed his lips in thought, "I believe for a crime of this nature, he would get a minimum of 40 years"

A sigh of relief was heard from the twins, who had been very tense up until that moment.

"But given the fact that Miguel is a minor, the man could get the 'until final death' sentence, meaning that he would be held in prison until he vanishes" the officer tried to erase the smile that the statement produced. He had gotten in this business specifically to protect people like Miguel, and if it were up to him, the man would be left to rot in prison. Unfortunately, the system still needed to adjust in favor of victims in situations like this.

"What if is caught and gets a sentence but doesn't complete it before passing" Oscar asked.

"What do you mean?" the officer adjusted his glasses to take a better look at one of the twins.

"Let's say that he gets 65 years, but dies before finishing it" Felipe stepped in, "what happens then?"

"Well, for the sake of the argument let's say that he completes 30 of the 65 years, and then he passes" the officer began, "in that situation, when arriving here he would be placed under immediate arrest and forced to serve the remaining 35 years, then he would be free"

"In all honesty" Héctor spoke loud and firmly, he wanted to let the officer know that his great-great-grandson would not be pushed around, "I don't like that he could be set free when coming here, how would I know that he'll stay away from our boy?" he asked emphasizing the words 'our boy', earning a smile from Julio and his brothers-in-law.

"Well, you can always pursue another trial here, but there isn't that big of a chance of winning" the officer sighed.

"Why not?" Felipe asked while trying to control his voice.

"Because in the eyes of the law he already did his time for the crime committed", the officer took another look at the paperwork, "it wasn't just the um… 'attack', he also stole your money, _si_?"

Miguel nodded.

"Let's say that in the Land of the Living he is only trialed for the 'attack'" the officer flipped through the paperwork, "You can trail him here for the robbery, and psychological damage"

"You can trail someone for psychological damage?" Héctor blinked in surprise.

"It's a new law, but is being taken very seriously", the officer looked at Miguel and smiled, "if you really push it, I'd say you could get him a minimum of 20 years"

"What about Ernesto?" Miguel asked suddenly.

"What about him?" Héctor answered confusedly.

"Is he in prison?" the boy looked at his great-great-grandfather with a worried face.

"We couldn't prove what he did to Héctor" Julio responded with a sad tone, "But all of the family has a restraining order against him, so he won't be coming anywhere near us", he gave Miguel a comforting smile, "plus he's scared of Imelda" he added earning a few chuckles from everyone in the room.

"Oh-h!" Héctor jumped, "speaking of the restraining order, now that we are here can you add Miguel to it?"

"Since the restraining order states 'the Rivera family' that won't be necessary" the officer replied, "Miguel is a part of the family, so it's already taken care of"

The family nodded in relief.

"Are there any more questions?" the officer looked around in the room, "Any other thing I can help you with?"

"Would you let us know as soon as the man passes?" Oscar asked.

"Absolutely, I will give you a phone call" the officer smiled.

"How long do you think he has left?" Felipe glanced at Miguel with a worried face.

"Given the fact that he has a lot of arrests based on alcohol that began when he turned 18" the officer stared blankly in thought, "And he is in his late 30's, if he doesn't quit drinking then 5 years maximum" the officer cringed, "if he does quit drinking, there is still a lot of liver damage, so it could go up to only 12-15 years"

The twins looked at each other and then at Miguel.

"He won't live to be 60 for sure" The officer finished, "any other questions?"

Héctor looked at his family, who shook their head.

"Okay, great!" the officer gave them a radiant smile, "just make sure to come by to drop off the clothing and we'll send it to our lab right away"

…

The trip home was tenser than expected, mostly because Miguel found himself exhausted after all the crying and he could barely stand. The family had decided to take a taxi home, which was unusual since Imelda wasn't fond of cars and hence they walked everywhere. He ended up falling asleep on Julio's shoulder, who took off his jacket and covered the boy with it.

After getting home, the twins carried him to his room and accepted to watch him until he awoke. They asked for help when he began crying in his sleep, so Coco decided to hold him until he calmed down. The family left them alone, knowing that they had a special bond and needed each other to heal.

"Mamá Coco?" the boy asked with a sleepy voice when waking up.

"¿ _Como te sientes mijo?",_ she responded with a motherly tone.

"Tired" he smiled and sat up in the bed.

She placed a hand in his shoulder, he turned around to find her usual kind expression. "What happened yesterday?" she asked.

"W-what do you mean?" Miguel felt his voice trembling.

"You know what I mean" She answered with a serious tone.

Miguel recognized the familiar feeling of being trapped, that was the effect that Coco could give out. She was so kind and could make anyone feel better, regardless of any situations. But she was also very blunt, making anybody feel like they didn't have any choice but to partake in whatever the situation was. Her strategy consisted of jumping straight to the point and cornering the individual with her stare, until they were worn down. He remembered the time when Abel started dating a girl that didn't have any good intentions, but he was stubborn and wouldn't listen to anyone, that was until Coco locked him in her room and forced him into a conversation. "I-I really don't want to remember" He said and looked away.

"You're going to have to eventually" She declared and grabbed the boy's chin, forcing eye contact.

"It isn't the fact that I died" he slowly began, "I mean, you probably know better than anyone since it's only been two years since you passed, but this world" he waved his arm around the room, "it makes you feel like you are still alive, but the conditions are different" he lowered his arm and stared at the window, "and since I've been here before it still feels like I can go home" he closed his eyes with a pained expression, "I know I can't, but I want to believe there's still a chance, that I'm somehow still cursed and there's a happy ending waiting for me"

"Miguel…" Coco said hoping to find the right words, but this time she came up empty-handed.

"I know it's childish, but they teach us that good people have good things happen to them" Miguel discovered that the sadness was gone, and now there was only numbness, "do bad things happen to good people, or am I a bad person?"

In a split-second Coco took her shoe off and smacked Miguel's arm with a surprising strength. The boy jerked back and started at her great-grandmother in shock; she had never hit him before.

"M-Mamá C-Coco" he stuttered, finding the tears that were building up in his throat.

"Don't you ever think that way again, understood?" her voice was sharp like a knife, with an anger that he'd never seen before, "You are not a bad person and if you think that you are, you aren't my Miguel"

"What am I supposed to think then?" he asked slightly raising his voice.

"You are asking the wrong person" Coco stared out the window, "I was there when you born, I held you in my arms" she swallowed, "You were so small, such a tiny miracle, how could such a small being make me feel so much joy?" she smiled at the memory, "everything that I had to go through was worth it because of you" she pointed at all the pictures in the room, "all of you are my legacy, without you I am nothing more than an old woman" she gave him a warm smile, "no matter how old you get, you are still the little baby I held in the hospital" her expression turned into a mixture of anger and sadness, "that little baby is here right now, and he's hurting" her expression was now a serious one, "imagine if someone would dare to touch Socorro"

Miguel flinched at that comment, he knew what Coco meant and was grateful he wasn't in that position. "This situation is hurting everyone" he commented sadly.

"The most important person right now is you" she spoke firmly, "it is isn't the situation that is hurting us, it is the fact that you're hurting" she raised her hand and slowly petted his check, "if you are sad, angry or happy, so are we" she put her hand down and Miguel quickly missed her motherly touch, "Just remember that whatever the situation is or whatever choices you make, we will always love you"

"I just don't feel like a man" he finally admitted.

"And what does it mean to be man?" Coco asked with a bit of sarcasm in her voice.

"Well, for starters a man never cries" he pointed out remembering vast amount of times he had broken down in the last 24 hours.

"I guess Julio and Papá aren't men then" she maintained the sarcasm in her voice.

"You know what I mean!" he snapped in frustration, "I had to ask them to tell the family about my passing and how I died because I couldn't"

"Would you expect someone who went through the exact same situation as you to be able to face it just hours after it?" she asked, now trying to keep the sarcasm from her voice, "and you did go to the police station today to testify" she added

"Well yeah, b-but" he scrambled looking for any other arguments, but in the heat of the moment didn't find any.

" _Mijo_ , becoming a man is something that you are still too young to understand" she comforted him.

"No, I understand how it works, and some kids in my school have done it" he cringed, "and I haven't even kissed a girl, I still find them annoying"

"Done what?" she asked and received a look from Miguel, "Oh, OH MY" she felt the realization hit her like a slap, "SANTO DIOS, THAT'S NOT WHAT I MEANT!" she threw her arms up with a mixture of surprise and anger, "Who did you hang out with? For Christ's sake you are 13 years old!" she made a disgusted face.

Miguel tried to stifle the laughter, but a few giggles got out, earning him another hit in the arm with Coco's shoe. "You better not go off doing that here!" she gave him a serious look, "just because you can't get a girl pregnant doesn't mean anything, understood?"

"Mamá Coco I wasn't even thinking about that until you brought it up" Miguel answered playfully.

"I TOLD YOU THAT'S NOT WHAT I MEANT!" she responded angrily, "ANYWAYS, being a man has nothing to do with THAT"

"Then what does it mean to be one" he asked and started counting the patterns on the floor.

"You'll have to ask the men in this house" Coco answered with half of a smile.

"So, you don't know what a man is?" he asked and looked up at her.

"I know what a man isn't" she pointed out proudly, "I married Julio because I knew he is a man, the other men I dated were kids in adult clothes" she chuckled, "it gave you _pena ajena_ " (=feel sorry for others)

" _Gracias Mamá Coco_ " Miguel smiled as he felt like a weight had been taken off his chest.

"For what _mijo_?"

"I feel better now" he answered and leaned in for a hug, which she gladly returned.


	6. Chapter 6

_Hey guys! I'm so greatful for all the support I have been getting from all of you! I'm sorry this chapter took a while to upload but besides just recently moving, a lot of stuff has happened since._

 _Now that the semester has started again, I might have some trouble writing, but I'll try my hardest to upload at least once a month._

 _Now, on to the next chapter…_

…

The next couple of days were a blur, the Riveras made shoes non-stop since there was a play coming up and they had over 20 orders of different custom-made shoes. Miguel had been visiting his death counselor, and it seemed to help since he stopped crying in his sleep, which gave the family some relief. They knew that the problems hadn't started yet, but at least he didn't seem to be repressing anything. Coco returned to her former self and seemed to be taking the boy's death better than she had taken Victoria's. Finally, when the week was over, they found themselves sitting in the living room sharing some quality time with each other by interchanging stories.

"How did you and Mamá Imelda meet?" Miguel turned to Héctor with curious eyes.

"Well…" Héctor turned to look at his wife, who pressed her lips together trying to suppress a smile, "I went to the market to play and earn some extra money to buy my own guitar" he looked at the ceiling with dreamy eyes, "it was such a beautiful day, the sun was shining and I was wearing the charro suit that the priest had gotten me for my birthday, and then I bought a churro but it was salty for some reason, and then I said hello to Doña Maria who told me I looked ridiculous, but we all knew she was crazy about me, and then…" Imelda grabbed Héctor shoulder, making him stop mid-sentence.

"Long story short, I noticed this guy looking at me weird when I was grocery shopping" Imelda patted his lap playfully, "and next thing I knew I was married and pregnant"

"I was getting to the good stuff!" Héctor made a sad face expecting to get a reaction from Imelda, but she quickly dismissed it.

"You always remember the details of unimportant stuff" she stated and gave him a look.

" _Por supuesto_!" he smiled, "am I just supposed to forget the day I met the love of my life AND that bird that showed me his affection by almost popping on me?" he asked expecting for the family to laugh, but the comment only made the situation awkward, everyone glaring at him with pity.

"Everyone said I could do better" Imelda clenched her teeth together and looked away from him.

"But you didn't listen and now that you can't back out look how happy we are!" Héctor exclaimed and gave his wife a big hug, earning a few chuckles from the family and an eye roll from her.

"Still happily married" she said with a forced tone.

"So, you stay married even after death?" Miguel asked.

"What do you mean?" Héctor responded frowning in confusion without letting go of Imelda.

"I thought when you got married in the Land of the Living that was only until death do you apart" the boy explained, "with that logic, that would mean that the marriage ended after Papá Héctor died"

Héctor's jaw dropped open and he quickly let go of Imelda, whose eyes pooped open as the realization dawned on them like a slap. The thought hadn't crossed Imelda's mind at all, and now that it was out in the open it seemed foolish that she had missed it. And the fact that the boy would have known instead of her? Oh, what a fool she had been! _Estupida! Estupida! Estupida!_ Now what? Was she really not married? What did it make Héctor? Her boyfriend? At her age? Even when Héctor wasn't around, she still considered herself a married woman. And now that he was back she had been so happy, so much so that she decided to push all formalities aside, celebrating that he was finally home.

"Mamá, did you really not know?" Coco asked squinting her eyes in disbelief.

"YOU KNEW AND DIDN'T TELL ME?!" she answered jerking away from Héctor as if he were dangerous.

"We thought you wanted to try that new modern thing where you live together before marriage" Coco answered with a shy smile.

" _DIOS MIO!_ " Imelda exclaimed at the realization of what her daughter said. The anger in her voice was freighting, this being the first time that she had been so utterly humiliated. Her family had known what they were doing all along, and the fact that it was out of wedlock made it much, MUCH worse. Of course, they had been intimate, in both of their eyes they were still married and could be as adventurous as they pleased. Oh god they had been VERY adventurous.

"And you still shared your bed with him" Felipe stated loudly enough to be heard but looked at the ceiling avoiding his sister's death stare.

"DID YOU KNOW?" she turned to look at Héctor who violently shook his head.

"I swear the idea didn't even cross my mind" he raised his two hands in innocence.

"Well, technically you can still do better" Miguel added while looking at his great-great-grandmother with a bright smile to try and lighten the mood. But he only got mixed glares from everyone in the room, "and that is my cue to leave" he made a quick exit but hid behind the wall to keep listening to the conversation.

" _Mija_ , why didn't you tell me?" Héctor asked with a low voice.

"We didn't want to ruin what you two had" Coco responded.

"So, you two aren't married either?" Imelda asked trying to control her voice.

"No, we are married" Julio answered and reached for his wife's hand, who gladly surrendered it.

"How did you do it?" Héctor asked locking his eyes on Coco to try and ignore the awkward stares the family was giving him.

"Simple, we just went to City Hall and got a marriage license" Coco explained, "it only took 10 minutes"

"So that is all we would have to do?" Imelda asked feeling relieved.

"Technically yeah" Julio looked at her mother-in-law with compassion, "but then there is the other option of having the whole wedding experience _otra vez_ "

"Interesting" Imelda sighed closing her eyes, she swallowed her pride and turned to look at Héctor, "tomorrow we'll go there and get married"

"A marriage proposal without a ring?" Héctor looked at Imelda with puppy eyes, "I'm an old-fashioned guy and would like a ring on my…".

"Don't push it" Imelda said firmly, making him quiet. A small giggle was heard from the hallway, "MIGUEL GO TO YOUR ROOM RIGHT AWAY!"

…

Miguel gave Héctor a shy smile as he got settled in the boy's room, "so it'll be like a fun sleep over, Papá Héctor?" he asked and played a few soft cords on his guitar.

Héctor squinted his eyes at the boy, "Imelda kicked me out of our room because of you"

"Me? What did I do?" the boy asked innocently.

"If you hadn't said anything I'd be in my room with my beautiful wife" Héctor answered as he softened his pillow.

"She's technically not your wife but alright", Miguel mumbled earning a look from Héctor, "anyways, isn´t this technically your bachelor party?"

"I've been a bachelor for almost a century, _mijo_ " Héctor sat on his mattress, "and all I wanted was to be married to Imelda and get _mi familia_ back"

"Are you going to wear a tux and everything?" the boy asked and softly began to play the chords of _La Llorona_.

"I'll see, but for now I want to get her a wedding ring as soon as possible" Héctor smiled, "she's too beautiful, so the world needs to know she's taken"

"Why don't we stay up and write her a song?" Miguel proposed, holding the guitar tightly.

" _Buena idea, mijo!_ " Héctor smiled and climbed up to the boy's bed, scrambling for ideas.

"I must admit I got nothing" Miguel smiled shyly and offered the guitar to his great-great-grandfather, who returned the smile and gently took the guitar, "I wonder if marriages are binding only until death so that afterwards the person can start over when they get here"

"Maybe" Héctor answered and began to play a few soft chords, "I'm still not one of those people, I have always been in love with Imelda"

"What does that feel like?" the boy asked as he fell over on the bed, blankly staring at the ceiling, "To love someone for so long?".

Héctor stopped playing and sighed in thought, "I guess it's odd, when we first married it was passionate and she was perfect to me" he smiled, "it wasn't until we started living together that I noticed her flaws, but I always knew that she was a good woman so I loved her regardless", he began playing soft chords again, "when we found out she pregnant, it was when it became real how much she really loved me"

"What do you mean?" the boy asked rolling over to look at the man.

"Because she was carrying my child" Héctor answered with a soft voice, "pregnancy is though, I first-hand know because I never left her side, and I saw what it did to her" he continued playing the guitar softly, "I really can't explain it, but I can tell you that when a woman carries your child it is the ultimate love sign"

"It must be" Miguel responded with a sad tone and rolled over to once again look at the ceiling.

Héctor noticed his great-great-grandson's change in mood and decided to take advantage of the opportunity to finally discuss the elephant in the room, " _Mijo_ " he began, "I know we haven't really gotten a chance to talk about it"

"Talk about what?"

"What happened that night" Héctor put the guitar aside and sat criss cross in front of the boy.

"What do you want to know?" Miguel asked without taking his eyes off the ceiling.

"I mostly want to know how you're feeling" Héctor replied and stretched his hand out to touch the boy but changed his mind and quickly put it away.

"I try not to think about it" Miguel closed his eyes, "I mostly deal with it when I see my death counselor, she has been really helpful through it all" he opened his eyes slowly, "but what I can tell you is that it still feels surreal, like it can't be happening to me"

Héctor remined quiet, knowing that the boy needed time to fully express what he was feeling.

"It's really a mix of thought and emotions, sort of like they take turns to come and haunt me" the boy focused on the point in the ceiling, "it feels like I can't deal with any of them because they don´t stay long enough"

"What kind of thoughts?"

"I miss my family over in the Land of the living, I know that I will see them again but it doesn't stop me from feeling homesick" Miguel felt the tears building up in his neck and he desperately tried to swallow them, "I always thought that 10 years from now I'd be married and playing music for the world, but now I know that even if I get to play, I won't be able to get married, and if I do we won't get to grow old together and have kids like Mamá Coco and Papá Julio" the boy kept trying to swallow the feeling but tears began to leak, "I guess I'm just sad and disappointed over the things that I won't get to do" there was a brief silence, "and then come the much darker thoughts"

Héctor nodded and took a deep breath, trying to control the sudden wave of anger that shook his body. He knew that the boy had been through something awful that no one should ever have to experience, an experience that never happened to his family, because they were good people who didn't deserve any of that.

"I think about him" Miguel said with a cold tone filled with anger, "I think about what he did and the things that I'd like to do him in return"

"Do you want to talk about that?" Héctor asked cautiously knowing that the topic was too sensitive.

"I'd rather not" the boy finally turned around to meet his great-great-grandfather's gaze.

"I understand" Héctor replied and picked up the guitar, "instead we can stay up all night to write a new song for Imelda!"

Miguel groaned and picked up a pillow to cover his face with it, "remind me why you're sleeping in my room"

"Because you're the reason I got kicked out of mine" Héctor responded with a mischievous smile, "Plus I couldn't sleep in Rosita and Victoria's room for obvious reasons, I didn't want to stay with Coco and Julio, and Oscar and Felipe don't have any space in their room"

"Couldn't you just have gotten a separate bed in Mamá Imelda's room?"

"Imelda wanted the room for herself" Héctor was now playing upbeat chords, "and now prepare for an all-nighter _with your grandpaaaa"_ Héctor matched his voice with the chords of his guitar, earning a loud groan from the boy.

…

Héctor and Imelda found themselves in City Hall with a marriage license in their hands, waiting for the next notary available to sign it. He wore a new suit that Oscar let him borrow, while she wore a dress of pale colors with her hair being arranged in a braid by Rosita with a few plastic flowers added by Coco Victoria had gone out early in the morning to put together a bouquet of purple flowers, which she gave to Héctor with a sly smile.

"Are you ready, _mi amor_?" he asked and gathered enough courage to take her hand and gently play with her thumb.

"Ready as I'll ever be" she answered with her voice sounding shaky.

Héctor looked at her carefully, he'd guessed that she was nervous since she barely spoke to him all and avoided his gaze but let him grab her hand and seemed to be shaking. In a way he couldn't help but feel a little disappointed, when they had first married it was a small ceremony since they had to pay for the wedding themselves and didn't get a chance to go on a honeymoon. But now they had plenty of money to hold a big wedding and reception, and on top of that they could have a honeymoon. He had always been a romantic, and the idea of proposing to her all over again and seeing her walk down the aisle with a white dress in front of his new family and friends, well, that seemed like a dream come true.

"Héctor and Imelda?" a female voice called out from the office.

"This is it" Héctor said and leaned in to plant a kiss in her cheek. She smiled and got up cleaning up her dress anxiously with her hands, he grabbed one of them and kissed it, "You look so beautiful Imelda, _tan hermosa…_ "

She rested her head in his shoulder, "you are what makes me beautiful" she admitted.

He hugged her, amazed at how warm her body felt. And for a moment, nothing else was important, it was just the two of them. They understood that they were made for each other, even when they got separated every path seemed to lead back to each other. She had ended their courtship plenty of times, and he was close to giving up but in the end, they rushed their wedding day. Even when he left and suddenly died, she still took him back and now they were finally together once again, not knowing what was coming next, praying not be separated anymore.

"Héctor and Imelda!" the female voice called out again impatiently. And suddenly they were apart and going inside the office to meet the woman, "there are 15 other couples behind you, so let's make this quick" the woman seemed to be in her early 30's with a few gray hairs and thick glasses.

"S-Sorry" Héctor mumbled and handed her the marriage certificate.

"Okay, I'll just sign this and then you two sign it" she said as she grabbed the pen from her desk.

"What happens after that?" Imelda asked, tightening her grasp on Héctor's hand.

"After all of us sign you'll be officially married" she answered and quickly signed the document.

"Just like that?" Héctor asked taking the pen.

"It is meant to be quickly" she answered hinting for the couple to hurry up and sign it.

He took a deep breath and signed it as quickly as he could as to not change his mind. He handed the pen to his wife-to-be with a shy smile, she took it and leaned over to sign the papers. Her hand shaking as she slowly began to write her name in cursive.

"I can't do it!" she snapped dropping the pen and taking a step back.

"Imelda!" Héctor stepped forward and gently stroked her cheek, "are you getting cold feet?" he asked feeling a mix of emotions building up.

"I d-don't know" she stuttered avoiding his gaze but allowing him to remain close, "I want to be married to you, but this doesn't feel right"

"Are you going through with this or not?" the woman asked impatiently, "we need to keep this line moving"

"Let's have a big wedding!" Héctor said with a big smile, "we'll invite everyone we know so I can brag that I'm marrying the most beautiful woman that ever existed"

Imelda chuckled and wiped the tears off, "yes, let's have the biggest wedding this town had ever seen" she stepped forward to grab the marriage certificate and tear it in half, then she looked at the woman, "no, we won't go through with it" she said proudly.

Héctor picked up his wife, amazed at how little she weighted and carried her out of the office. This earned them glares from everyone else in the hallway, but he still held her proudly.

…

 _The dark passage was familiar to Miguel, he had nightmares about it every night since he died. And they were always the same: he was back in the alley and getting murdered all over again. The more he had that dream the angrier he became, it was slowly turning him into someone he didn't recognize, and it was scary._

' _Por favor… let me walk away' he desperately attempted to move his body to walk away, but he moved automatically, slowly headed towards his death._

 _The worst part of all of it was that he was aware it was a dream, and he knew what was going to happen, but it didn't matter how much he screamed or tried to pinch his arm. It was as if his body was in a trance, and he was stuck as a prisoner inside of his own brain._

 _He had now reached the middle of the path, and without any delay the man jumped from the shadows with his knife asking for the boy's wallet. As the routine intended, the boy froze at the sight of the knife and didn't move, making the man more desperate. Miguel tried for one last time to move his body, ordering his hand to reach inside his pocket to give the man his wallet so he could go home. Of course, this proved worthless, and the man lost any patience he had and grabbed the boy by his shirt, pushing him against the wall and thrusting the knife into his stomach._

 _This time there wasn't desperation or shock, only anger. Bubbling up very quickly and taking everything the boy every was away, leaving this unfamiliar character. 'I will kill you… bastardo… if I killed you, the whole world would cheer because you are a worthless piece of shit…'. The man smiled at the screams of the boy and twisted the knife slowly, but since his body was in shock there wasn't more pain. 'I will turn that smile into and expression of desperation… it would be so easy… and so fucking satisfying… to wait until you're too drunk to walk… and put my hands around your neck and tighten them slowly… watching you gasp for air' The man payed no attention to the threat that Miguel gave away as he was distracted counting the money in the boy's wallet. 'I swear on Mamá Coco´s grave that I will kill you' this statement snapped the boy's real personality back as the realization of what he just said hit him. 'Oh God… what did I just say? What have I done?' The man tightened his hand around the boy's neck before letting go and running away, 'make it stop… please… no more…' Miguel now had control of his body and he covered the wound with his hands._

" _Ayuda… por favor…" the words came out as a whisper with no sound. 'I have to hold on, I'll be okay… I just need to get to the hospital and I'll be okay…', although the statement was false, the boy still found comfort in it, "AYUDENME! POR FAVOR!" now his words had sound and he identified quick footsteps heading to his direction._

' _Did you kill him?' one of the voices asked_

' _Of course, he didn't, he's just a big coward'_

' _He might come back, you have to run'_

' _You're weak"_

 _Miguel tried to block out the voices by focusing in the individuals coming to his aid, but now there was only darkness with voices as his only company._

' _I'm talking to you, coward'_

' _Please run Miguel'_

' _Worthless'_

' _Can you do anything right?'_

 _Suddenly, a bright light emerged stunning the boy and silencing the voices, and he was now facing a tall-looking skeleton. It was wearing a festive red and green dress with a big Mexican style hat, and it felt strangely familiar._

" _Miguel Rivera" the skeleton asked in the form of a statement, it had a female and powerful voice that gave him chills._

" _Y-Yes?" he stuttered._

" _An unfair atrocity has been committed against you" the skeleton didn't move nor blink, "and I have gotten orders from above to make it right"_

" _W-Wh-Who are you?" Miguel swallowed attempting to not break eye contact._

" _I am la Muerte" she responded, and her expression softened at the child's fear, "you may refer to me in whichever way you please"_

" _You are the Santa Muerte?" the boy asked starting to get more comfortable in her presence._

" _I am simply Muerte" she answered, "I have taken this form based on your beliefs, but I can take any others if I please or need to"_

" _Why are you here?" he felt proud by recognizing that he wasn't too afraid to keep stuttering._

" _You have been murdered by the same blood that killed your great-great-grandfather Héctor Rivera"_

" _Same blood?"_

" _The man who held the knife that killed you is the great-grandson of an illegitimate love child of Ernesto's" she squinted her eyes in anger, "the same sin has been committed in your family by the same blood and because of that, you have been given another chance"_

" _Another chance?" hope filled his chest and he began uncontrollably hyperventilating._

" _Another chance at life" she nodded towards the boy and the hyperventilating stopped altogether._

" _Gracias, um… Muerte?" he shrugged shyly._

" _You may call me that" she responded in a softer tone, "but before you can take your second chance, something must be done first"_

" _What?" the boy's mouth curved into a smile, he was finally going home._

" _Have you heard of the phrase 'eye for an eye'" she asked_

" _Yes"_

" _You must do exactly that"_

" _I-I d-don't understand"_

" _Take the life of the man that took yours"_


	7. Chapter 7

_Hey guys! Sorry for not having updated in a while! The actual work that comes with taking 19 hours in college finally emerged, and since I'm going to study abroad to Italy next semester, I need to save up and apply to scholarships. Which is, as you can imagine, a lot of essays; I also am not a US citizen, so there are a lot of scholarships with amazing rewards that I can't apply for. Therefore, I am applying to some that have small rewards, so the money can start building up._

 _Do you guys know of any scholarships for US permanent residents? I already have a subscription to Scholarshipowl, Fastweb, Niche and . I would really appreciate it if you could help me out_ 😊 _._

 _Anyways, on to the story…_

….

Enrique woke up because of Socorro's crying; he recognized the weight on his chest, his mouth felt dry and he had an unbearable headache. He knew that his dry mouth and headache were the results of crying himself to sleep the previous night; of course, he had been quiet. At first, he locked himself in the bathroom after he made sure Luisa was asleep, and he cried while burying his face on the red hoodie, which still had Miguel's scent; the tears were so strong that his screams, which called out to his son, came out with no noise. Then, when he didn't have any more strength, he'd go back to the bed and sob quietly until sleep came; he would have rather gone inside the boy's room, but that was where his mother lived now. In the past, Elena has taken pride in being strong and not letting anyone see weakness, but now that fire had burned out; at night, her crying was strong while her husband held her, and in the morning, her eyes looked puffy and she worked with no passion.

Two weeks had gone by since Miguel's death, but every day felt as if it were the first. Enrique turned to look at his wife, who was still in a deep sleep; he knew that for now, everything was alright in her world. As soon as she'd would wake up, it would all be destroyed, because Miguel had died; well, 'murdered' was the right term. He forced himself to sit up on the bed, surprised that even that small action took up so much of his strength, and then dragged his lifeless body over to Socorro's crib. As soon as he picked her up, she stopped her crying, but began opening and closing her mouth, asking to be fed. Enrique couldn't help but chuckle, now this was the only treasure he had left, and he had to take care of it, he wasn't going to let her go own her own. He wasn't going to make that mistake again.

He gave one last look to his wife, before quickly stepping out of the room while holding Socorro. The house was quiet, although it was past 10 am, but he heard the noise coming from the workshop, and knew that Berto, Carmen and the twins were probably working. Berto and Carmen had always been the irresponsible couple; when dating, they would go away together and not return home until dawn. Carmen came from a bad family, and the family knew that she dated Berto to try and run away from the situation. In the end, they had no choice but to marry after she revealed she was pregnant, the family tried their best to accept Carmen, but she was mostly lazy, using her pregnancy as an excuse to not work. Luisa, on the other hand, was hardworking, even when pregnant she worked hard, Elena had to tell her that she needed to rest.

But now after the boy's passing, Carmen had stepped up and showed real responsibility, working twice as hard as Elena used to. She'd wake up at dawn and make breakfast for everyone, to then head to the workshop and work on all the orders on her own. Elena would sometimes join her, but Carmen eventually turned her away, understanding that the family needed to mourn. Berto took care of all the funeral arrangements, and even volunteered to go identify the body, so that Enrique wouldn't have to. The twins were only a little over three years old, and they didn't understand what was happening, so it wasn't strange that they'd still run around and play even when Carmen tried so hard to hush them.

The funeral had been lovely, with all the town showing up, Enrique wasn't surprised because he knew that his son was memorable and could leave an impact on everyone easily. The news that he had been murder caused a lot of commotion, mostly because no one understood how such a boy could have such a tragic fate. Who in this small and wonderful town could commit such an atrocity? The police narrowed it down to one suspect, one of the few drunks that haunted the streets, the only one that showed violent behavior while intoxicated. They also knew that this man was related to Ernesto de la Cruz, and Miguel alone had been the one responsible for the celebrity's demise. However, the man's link to the celebrity was brushed under the rugs, and the man wasn't getting any part of the fortune before or after de la Cruz's downfall, so if he would have murdered the boy, there wasn't much of a motive. It didn't help that the town had poor technology, and even if the man left any footprints on Miguel, they wouldn't know how to proceed.

Enrique arrived at the kitchen to find Gloria already there, cleaning and wrapping up everyone's breakfast for it to stay warm. It was just a waste of time, the family had barely been eating, so why did it matter to keep the food warm? " _Buenos días"_ he greeted his sister with a smile and a nod.

She turned, and her face lit up when she saw the baby, " _Buenos días_ " she told him in a dull tone, " _y muy buenos días para ti también"_ she added with a sweet tone while looking at the baby.

" _Gracias_ for making breakfast" Enrique said and immediately got frustrated with how weak his voice sounded. He sighed and sat down, putting Socorro on his lap.

" _De nada_ " she responded with a smile, "Carmen has been working so hard lately, so from now on I'll be taking care of the house while she works on the shop" She sat on the chair next to him and looked at Socorro, "How are you today? Are you all nice and clean?" she asked in a sweet tone.

Ah _joder_! He'd forgotten to change the baby's diaper! That is literally step one right after she wakes up! What was wrong with him? Enrique sighed loudly and closed his eyes, trying to control his expression.

"I'm guessing that's a no" Gloria answered with a sympathetic smile, "You eat while I bathe and take care of this little _ángel_ "

"I can take care of my daughter" Oh no. He immediately looked at his sister with an expression filled with panic, that's not what he meant! Gloria had a reputation for taking things personally, and this sure as heck was one where it would be reasonable to.

She read his expression and responded with a warm smile, "when I come back this plate better be empty" she pushed a plate of scrambled eggs and _chorizo_ in his direction, and then proceeded to grab Socorro from his lap and plan a kiss on her cheek, "and I'm not an idiot, I WILL look in the trash" she added and stepped out the door.

Enrique looked down at his food and couldn't fight the overwhelming disgust and nausea that filled his chest, which made him ashamed. In the past, his sister's cooking was a treat, of course Elena knew how to cook decent meals, but Gloria's cooking was a blessing, she could put anything together for a meal and it would still taste amazing. But now, food smelled and tasted disgusting, he closed his eyes and told himself that he would grab the fork and start eating on three. One, two, three! His hand stayed still, and he didn't try to move it; a sigh left his mouth and he pulled his head up to look at the ceiling, focusing on one point without thinking of anything. This was worse than death, and even if he was to contemplate suicide, how was he going to be able to go through with it when something as trivial moving his hand seemed impossible?

Tears filled his eyes, and he wrestled with them, proud when he managed to pull most of them back, this wasn't the time to cry. He didn't have any strength to handle another breakdown, those he saved for the night, when he had enough energy to cry as hard as possible. It was a vicious cycle where he gathered energy during the day to use it up at night, and then wake up the next morning feeling numb, and gather some more to use at night and so on. Was this even healthy behavior? Who cares. Nothing matters anyways. He forced his body up from the chair and grabbed the plate with the food, throwing it in the trash and covering it up with napkins in an effort to be considerate towards his sister. She was going to care for Socorro, right? That means he could go back to bed. He closed his eyes once more praying for any kind of miracle, anything. He had once been a man, but he died the day his son died, and now there were only leftovers. And even his body felt weak, as if he had a horrible case of the flu, he just wanted to sleep and cry until death came.

He opened his eyes and found that no miracle occurred, he was still standing in the middle of the kitchen with an empty plate on his hand. His son was still dead, and the family was just as broken as before. He sighed, looking up and closing his eyes one last time " _Mijo, my precious son, we miss you. We miss you so much. Please come home"_

…

 _A quick comment here: I had mentioned that I was going to do a version on the Land of the Living, but didn't feel that it was so crucial to the story, that's why this chapter is short (also I didn't have the time to make it longer, yikes). And this is just me trying to put a face on depression, mostly from what I remember when I had it._

 _I'll do my best to make the next chapter as long as possible, thank you for being so supportive!_


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